. . . Anna Netrebko . . . has the longest item, `Casta diva¿, to which she brings lovely tone, an ability to sing smoothly and good phrasing. Her downward chromatic runs are nicely done and she is at ease in the divisions in the cabaletta . . . Garanca¿s warm tones are matched by her responsiveness in Dalila¿s aria: vocal velvet . . . Garanca. . . slips into the rhythm, is clear with the words and teases charmingly with the little figurations near the end. It also gives the orchestra a chance to show off . . . Tézier¿s performance convinces. The quartet from ¿Rigoletto¿ is well balanced, and the fine recording enables one to hear all four parts.

Record Review /
John T. Hughes,
International Record Review (London) / 01. December 2007

. . . their voices blending beautifully . . . all done with spirited fervor and admirable vocalism. Tenor Ramón Vargas is a positive presence, giving us the bel canto gem "Una furtive lagrima" from Donizetti's "L'elisir d'amore" in a flawlessly idiomatic interpretation that includes stunning diminuendos and a melting mezza-voce. Ludovic Tézier's rich baritone scores with a subtle rendition of Riccardo's death scene from Verdi's "Don Carlo" and, in yet another highlight in an evening full of them, joins Vargas in the great duet "Dio, che nell'alma infondere" from that opera . . . her [Garanca's] showpiece aria from Rossini's "La Cenerentola" sparkles, with impressive coloratura fireworks. Netrebko is among the most brilliant stars of today's operatic firmament . . . She brings the house down with the first of the concert's many encores, a performance of Lehar's "Meine Lippen" from the operetta, "Giuditta", that includes seductive singing and acting, sexual flirtations, and energetic dancing. Her enthusiasm is infectious, sparking her colleagues as well as the audience. All four singers join in the quartet from "Rigoletto" that ends the formal portion of the concert, and in the final encore, they trade verses in an arrangement of the "Drinking Song" from "La Traviata". Conductor Marco Armiliato, whose supportive accompaniments help make the concert a rousing success, directs the capable orchestra. So this two-hour singfest provides joys for vocal buffs . . .

Record Review /
Dan Davis,
Amazon.com / 22. February 2008

. . . [the] essential intimacy [of an opening 'Flower Duet' from "Lakmé"] is conveyed in a nicely blended performance from Anna Netrebko and Elina Garanca. Netrebko's solo item, 'Casta diva' from "Norma" . . . is technically impressive, and done with feeling . . . The men are of a similar standard . . . both are commendably without vulgarity. Giving the best overall impression is Ramón Vargas with his melting 'Una furtiva lagrima' . . . Excellent accompaniments from the Baden-Baden players.

Record Review /
George Hall,
BBC Music Magazine (London) / 01. April 2008

This recording . . . captures what must have been a very exciting event. (The DVD is also available.) The combined star power of soprano Anna Netrebko and mezzo-soprano Elina Garanca alone should be enough to have discs flying off shelves, but one should not discount the superb contribution of tenor Ramón Vargas. Vargas offers a treasurably thoughtful and un-showy "Una furtiva lagrima", as well as an energetic "Quando le sere al placido" from "Luisa Miller". He also proves the galvanizer in a particularly divine performance of the quartet from "Rigoletto", the disc's most satisfying guilty-pleasure treat. That said, the Netrebko-Garanca combination in the flower duet from "Lakmé" is intoxicating. Although each possesses a unique vocal personality, they enrich and enhance each other beautifully . . . Netrebko's sound is at its most limpidly lovely in this excerpt . . . she communicates a touching mix of conviction and fragility paired with Vargas in "O soave fanciulla". Garanca's supple, honeyed "Mon coeur s'ouvre à ta voix" unfolds with the confidence of an experienced seductress. She also executes one of the longest, most suspenseful trills I've ever heard in the zarzuela aria "Al pensar en el dueno" . . . baritone Ludovic Tézier . . . is nicely in his element . . .

A Feast of Beautiful Singing

The “Gala of the Opera Stars" captured on this CD belongs to a cherished tradition of exclusive events designed to showcase the talents of the world's leading singers, concerts that have been held to huge acclaim in international opera houses from Sydney to New York. Baden-Baden's Festival Theatre was the setting for the present encounter between two of the most exciting and beautiful young operatic voices currently before the public: the Russian soprano Anna Netrebko and the Latvian mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča. A programme featuring only these two singers would still have guaranteed the greatest possible musical enjoyment, to say nothing of the occasion's visual rewards. But a true gala demands the four classic types of operatic voice: soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor and baritone. And so the lovely duo became an imposing quartet with the addition of the Mexican star tenor Ramón Vargas and his no less famous baritone colleague from France, Ludovic Tézier.

The programme was performed three times, all performances being sold out within three hours. And the resultant atmosphere entirely reflected the occasion's significance. “Anna and I met some years ago in Riga," recalled Elīna Garanča, “and since then we've also sung together - but only for recordings. This is the first time we've appeared together onstage." “In order for an evening like this to succeed," adds Anna Netrebko, “you have to show more than just professional respect for each other. You have to like one another. And the four of us are really fond of one another." The two men were naturally unwilling to be outdone here. Ramón Vargas and Ludovic Tézier have worked together professionally in the past: “Ramón and I appeared together on stage in Lucerne about ten years ago. It's a joy to be able to revive our fond memories of that occasion through this new encounter - and, on top of everything else, in a place as special as Baden-Baden!"

Hearing the participants speak of their time together in Baden-Baden, it is hard not to be reminded of the bubbling enthusiasm of a summer camp for young people. Having to work together for several days in the same place for the concerts as well as for the accompanying CD and DVD allowed all four singers to bond together to form a team. And although their heavy workload meant that there was never time for them to relax and enjoy themselves in the town's inviting baths and parks, there was a mood of general well-being and relaxed music-making.

A not inconsiderable part in this feeling must have been played by Baden-Baden's cultural showpiece, its Festival Theatre, which was opened in 1998. The building combines past and future in a unique architectural ensemble, the town's old railway station having been incorporated into the new and spectacular design as a reception hall. The Baden-Baden Festival Theatre is now one of the leading venues on the international festival circuit and thus represents a particular challenge for the singers. “There is a very special public here," says Ludovic Tézier, whose appearances at the Met, Covent Garden and the Vienna State Opera mean that he knows his audiences extremely well. “Like everywhere else, you have to begin by knowing how to convince your audience. Only then can you start to seduce them. But in the Festival Theatre at Baden-Baden I have the impression that we are dealing with absolutely incorruptible music lovers who know exactly what they want. There seems to be none of the mentality here associated with mere musical consumerism."

The audience is made up of music lovers keen to concentrate on the music and willing to be entertained and moved on the highest level. Staging an opera gala means not least offering the audience a journey through a very special world of music, a journey planned with care and understanding. The programme has been put together so as to showcase the strengths of the individual singers, as if the composers in question, in prescient anticipation of this evening, had written these pieces with these very singers in mind. The elegance and breathtaking beauty of Anna Netrebko's legato singing, Elīna Garanča's sparkling coloratura and velvety low notes were highlighted just as surely as Ramón Vargas's radiant tenor and the expressive passion of Ludovic Tézier's baritone. And if all the soloists had already set their listeners' pulses racing with their individual arias, they completely captivated the audience with their duets from Lakmé, Les Pêcheurs de perles and La Bohème, before their palpable delight in making music left listeners completely under their spell in the quartet from Rigoletto, powerfully yet sensitively accompanied by the SWR Symphony Orchestra under Marco Armiliato.

Such was the concentrated presence - musically and dramatically - of these four world-class singers that one barely registered the absence of such seemingly indispensable operatic ingredients as sets or a director's guiding hand. The four singers acted out their parts spontaneously, creating an exceptional degree of tension and producing a series of choice operatic scenes that lent the gala its distinctive appeal.

By the end there was no holding back, and the evening culminated in a standing ovation on the part of an audience supremely grateful for an operatic feast, the secret of whose success seemed to be remarkably simple: “Of course, this evening is under a particularly lucky star," explained Elīna Garanča with an impish smile when questioned afterwards in her dressing room. “All four of us and even our conductor Marco Armiliato were born under the star sign of Virgo. And Virgos are known for their particular artistic streak!"